23 minutes/1.2 miles

One of the parks I walk by daily while the sun was setting

I walk a whole ton here in Manchester.  I walk to and from work (most days), which is about 23 minutes/1.2 miles one way.  Mostly along major roads, by a few parks, university halls, a Turkish Grocery, and several strips of little shops.

It's a beautiful walk in the sunshine, rain, when the leaves were bright and green when I first arrived, and now as they change with the season and fall.

I like my walk but sometimes it gets a little monotonous.  The same road, the same trees, the same pavement.  Even some of the same crazy drivers who whiz by me (Thank goodness there are bike lanes for when I ride the bike the church is letting me borrow for the year!).

Walking around the Parish one day, I found
this gem of a sign that reads:
NO FLY TIPPING RUBBISH DUMPING
Translation: Don't throw your trash on our lawn

Because of this 23 minutes of alone time I have twice a day, I have been trying to find ways to use it ‘productively’.

It was almost funny at first when I realized that I was feeling frustrated with time I thought I was wasting walking.  Why was it wasteful?  Walking is good for your health, and it wasn’t as though I never had enough time to get wherever I needed to go while walking.  So punctuality wasn’t my issue.

Was I bored from watching and listening to the cars whiz by?  I tried walking through the parks while it was light enough out instead of along the road, which was gorgeous, but didn’t address the deeper question.  It served to distract me from it.

Sometimes I listen to music, or a podcast while I walk.  That helps to keep me busy, and is usually pretty enjoyable, but this is only something to do during the daytime, and I still am very vigilant of who is around me.

What I began to do which has become a ritual several times a week now, is to use that time to pray.

The road I live down just after a big rain

Some of us (myself included) might be thinking at this point that this was the obvious answer all along, and I’ll say well of course it was.  In fact, it was something I started doing my second week of service at church.  But it still didn’t detract from the feeling of frustration some days.

It is something I’m working on, though.  Prayer is so important, and sometimes I have a focus of people I am praying for (in my first few weeks here I prayed for each country program, alumni, and other supporters of YAGM), and other times I just talk with whoever in the Holy Trinity is listening about what is weighing on my heart today.

 
I’m getting more comfortable with the idea that I have a 23 minutes/1.2 mile walk to and from church each day.  It means that when I need to, or want to, or am called to, I have time and space to pray.  We can do a lot with 23 minutes, but I think I’ve found a way to make the most of it so far.